


Unreliable Proficiency

by MoonCrown



Series: Unreliable Effect [1]
Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Adventure, Friendship, Original Character(s), PLEASE STOP, Reincarnation, Renegade Commander Shepard, a bit too much adventures actually, as realities they are less so, modern-insert, shepard no, video games are great
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-31
Updated: 2017-01-31
Packaged: 2018-09-21 05:15:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,974
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9533267
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MoonCrown/pseuds/MoonCrown
Summary: She was born again and everything just went downhill from there.





	

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two beginnings - one not necessarily better than the other

**_Year 2179, Vila Militar, Rio de Janeiro_ **

_"Sergeant Major, Second Lieutenant Lantz reports as ordered."_

_Command Sergeant Major Navarro finished his writing before he looked up. I hold my salute and try my best not to look like the farce I feel like. His piercing scrutiny made it hard not to feel ashamed – and even harder to hide it. I struggled not to look down._

_Seconds that feels like hours pass, and I don’t doubt he sees right through me._

_"At ease, Lieutenant," he finally says._

_I drop the salute._

_“I will be frank with you, Lieutenant,” he begins, “you do not belong here and if it was up to me you’d be on your way back to Europe with the next flight.”_

_He picks up my file only to drop it back on the desk, “it is enough that you made it to officer, but to be accepted here without required merits is simply intolerable” he continue, “you are an incompetent soldier that will be in charge of other –undoubtedly more competent –soldiers’ lives because of contacts in very high places, and if you had any shame you will drop out voluntarily. I can even offer a way for you to get an honorable discharge, and that’s probably more than you deserve.”_

_With every word my face grows hotter. I swallow thickly and blink away the tears that threatened to fall. He is mostly right so he’s not saying anything I don’t know, but hearing it from such a highly regarded person hurts – a lot. Also, he’s not being completely fair._

_I clear my throat, “permission to speak freely, Sergeant Major.”_

_He sighs exasperatingly, “Granted.”_

_“With all due respect,” he looks thoroughly unimpressed with my beginning phrase and my groggy voice hardly helped, but whatever, he already hates me, “I wouldn’t even have come here if it was up to me as well,” I furrow my brows, “come to think of it I don’t think I would’ve joined any military at all if it was up to me,” boot meet mouth, “I would love to just drop out, I assure you it’s not fun to be a walking embarrassment and I don’t want to disrespect anyone, but it’s really out of my hands and while I was probably the worst I actually did manage to graduate the OCS-…”_

_“Enough!”_

_I shut up, humiliation burning mercilessly in my chest. I look down by reflex._

_I hear him sigh again; it was the sound of a man who was tired of this shit._

_After a moment he speaks again, “then there is nothing left than to welcome you into the ICT-program, Lieutenant Lantz,” he declares with finality. I look at him again and he might as well have chewed a lemon._

_“Thank you, Sergeant Major.” I guess._

_He snorts and turns his attention back to the papers he was writing on earlier, “don’t thank me, Lieutenant,” and dismisses me with the wave of his hand._

**Year 2183, Arcturus Station**

I can’t believe it, it just, it can’t be real. Holy shit, it just-

“Lieutenant Lantz,” Navarro reprimands, “do I have to repeat myself?”

“No not at all, Sergeant Major!” I might sound a tad bit too jumpy and happy but I can’t help myself, “I accept, Sergeant Major!”

He gives me the same disapproving stare he always did but still hands me the Omni-file, “Read the file first, Lieutenant,” he firmly says, “this is actual combat, real missions with real dangers, do not take it lightly.”

I can barely stop myself from commenting that I know exactly what kind of dangers the Normandy will be subjected to and that I still don’t give a shit because it’s the freaking Normandy and I have just been handpicked by Captain Anderson to be part of the crew. I don’t need to think about this, this is amazing; this is what dreams are made of!

“Lieutenant Lantz,” he barks, “did you hear what I just said?”

Trying to stop myself from grinning too much I ended up with a silly lopsided smile, “Yes, Sergeant Major –it will be real missions and actual combat. I will read the file and then carefully make a decision.”

Am I too cheeky? Most definitely, but the small twitch at the corner of the Sergeant Major’s mouth let me know he’s going to let me get away with it just this once. I’m not going to tempt fate more than I already have, though. I push down my giddiness and salute him – god knows I owe him all respect I have.

“It has been an honor, training under your command, Sergeant Major,” because it had, even though it had had a shaky start.

Navarro snorts, “At ease, Lieutenant, I believe we just established you haven’t accepted the offer quite yet,” he turns away from me, facing blank vid-screen instead, “Don’t rush it, the offer stands until 23.59 today –dismissed.”

I salute once again and pretend I don’t see his melancholy smile in the dark reflection.

**-**

Excluding the Citadel, the Arcturus Station is the best of all space stations to be in; or rather it’s the only space station except for the Citadel that I don’t hate. It’s probably the size that does it – it doesn't feel like a small cave you can’t leave without suffocating to death. I’m not claustrophobic, but it’s uncomfortable. I also hate traveling in frigates, but of course, I’ve chosen to ignore that in favor of working on the actual Normandy. If it means I get to see and even sit at the same table as all of my favorite characters I can suffer through those terrible, loathsome sleeping pods. I shudder when I think about it, but priorities. I never even considered the Normandy to be an option, I had my sights on a nice cozy military base on earth or garden world colony, but hey, I’m not complaining. Well, I probably will, once I’m forced to sleep in a pod and spend an ungodly amount of time in a frigate in space, but eating dinner with Commander Shepard? I’m not strong enough to say no to that.

Happily, I enter my favorite place on the entire station; the Emporium.

I head past the stores and down to the food court. It’s more crowded than usual but today I don’t care –partly because of my good mood but mostly because I know I already have a saved seat waiting for me. I make my way through the buzzing crowd looking around while still carefully stepping aside for the occasional child or person holding a food tray.

“Hey, Braids!” Malik’s voice suddenly calls out. I grin and turn my head to see him slouched on a chair with one arm across an empty seat and the other waving me over. Butler sits on the opposite side of the table in a similar manner while Gabriel next to her sits upright while checking his Omni-tool. God, I will miss these guys.

“Hey,” I drop down and place the file on the table next to my food, “we’ll get dessert later right? I can eat like another 3000 calories today.” I take a spoonful of stew and slap Malik’s hand when he tries to reach for the file. He grumbles but slouches back on his seat.

Butler made a disgusted sound, “Ugh, you’re seriously gonna waste your pay again?”

“Humph, it’s not _waste_ ,” I protest loudly spluttering stew from my mouth, “it's _life_!”

Gabriel looks at me with distaste, “It’s disgusting,” he drawls, “stop talking with your mouth full.”

I make a grimace and is just about to retort when Malik interrupts me, “Just tell us what he wanted already!”

“’ne ‘oment,” I down the bite and clear my throat, “he didn’t want anything,” I start slowly to rile up Malik, “But…-“ I continue before he could open his mouth, “a certain Captain Anderson did!” I smile so wide my cheeks hurt and allow Malik to snatch the file from my hands, “I have been offered a spot on the freaking Normandy, and I’m going!” I finally squeal out.

“Holy-..”

”What!?” 

The only one who didn’t look shocked was Gabriel, he gives me a puzzled look instead, “you hate frigates,” he deadpans.

I hum in agreement and take another spoonful of food. It’s true; I even hate being in space in general, which is as bad as it sounds considering my current profession.

“Braids, it’ll be in the fifth fleet,” Malik stresses as he reads the file, “the 63rd scout flotilla… you won’t be anywhere near earth,” he passes it to Butler, “you sure about this?”

It’s starting to get on my nerves that everyone seems to doubt my judgment. I mean, I could hardly explain to them why the Normandy probably is the safest ship to work on the coming years because of obvious reasons but from a purely objective viewpoint this is a great opportunity! It can’t be that strange I’d consider it, even if I never wanted to be deployed off-earth in the first place. “Yes, I am,” I scowl.

“Lantz, have you even read this?” Butler startles, “you’ll be eligible for the ground team and it will serve as N6 training, fuck, I thought this was exactly what you didn’t want!”

I pause.

I hadn’t, in fact, read that. Butler is right –it is exactly what I don’t want. Shit. I thought I would mostly be on the ship, being a lieutenant and all, but I belong to the Special Forces now, not the marines. Of course they’re going to use me primary in combat. That Kaiden Anenko, or whatever his name, is a lieutenant too; already making three lieutenants in the crew excluding myself. It explains why I was given a choice – I’m not actually required. But it does not explain how in hell I possibly qualify for N6 training.

It doesn’t make any sense, I’m close to being dropped from the N5, and I thought I was accepting a real deployment, not another training course. Anderson is substantially overestimating me if he’s under the impression I’m worth pulling that kind of strings for. Perhaps I should have realized it though – since when did you get to decide where you get to be deployed? Not ever.

“Judging by the look on your face I assume you’ve returned to reality,” Gabriel comments dryly as he finish scrolling through the dossier and places it back on the table, “it’s an opportunity, but you’ll probably hate every second of it, so as I friend I suggest you decline.”

I should decline my entire military career, that’s what I should do. I could throw myself into a wall and get discharged. I’ll make it look like an accident, in some way. Anything would be better than to humiliate myself in front of Anderson or Shepard or anyone else on that crew, which I will because whatever misconception Anderson has about me is going to be unraveled before the end of the first mission. Though, I’m probably going to die first, which is a liberating but also even more terrifying thought. I have no plot armor to save me and unlike the good old days when all of this was a simple video game, I can’t lower the difficulty when things look bad.

“Oh fuck,” I hear Butler gasp. I can’t see her because I’m busy burying my face in my hands wishing I had never been reincarnated into this disastrous mess, “you’ve already accepted, haven’t you?”

I nod miserably. I sent my accept seconds after I exited my meeting with Navarro, despite his warning.

“When do you leave?” she continues, I hold up one finger, “one week?” I nod again.

“Damn,” Malik whistles slowly and stands up. He pats my back, “I’ll get you some desserts.”

Gabriel sighes. 


End file.
